Plantation community:
One third registered voters without NICs
by P.Krishnaswamy
Several trade unions and political parties representing the
plantation community, have expressed concern that a large percentage of
their people would not be able to exercise their franchise in the
February 7 Provincial Council polls for want of identity cards.
Leaders of political parties in the UPFA alliance told the Sunday
Observer that in spite of efforts initiated by them to facilitate the
issue of identity cards to those not in possession of them, there was
still a large shortfall which is likely to impair their turn out at the
polls.
According to leaders of the Ceylon Workers’ Congress (CWC), Upcountry
People’s Front (UPF), Up-country National Workers’ Union (UNWU) and
Ceylon Plantation Red Flag Union (CPRFU) that are contesting the polls
on UPFA ticket, over 30 percent of the registered voters among the
Indian origin community of the plantation estates were without identity
cards.
CWC President and Deputy Minister of Nation Building and Estate
Infrastructure Development, Muthu Sivalingam, told the Sunday Observer
that they had requested all authorities, including the Commissioner for
Registration of Persons, the relevant District Secretaries and
Divisional Secretaries to facilitate the issue of temporary ICs to those
without ICs so that they could exercise their franchise at the upcoming
polls.
Since the last date for obtaining the temporary ICs is December 31,
it is very unlikely that everyone without the national identity cards
will be able to get the temporary ICs. As a long-term solution the CWC
has insisted on the appointment of more Grama Niladharis from the
plantation community to address problems faced by the community in
relation to non-registration of births and non-issue of identity cards.
About 200 Indian origin Grama Niladharis were already appointed in
Badulla and Nuwara-Eliya districts under measures initiated by them, he
said.
UPF Deputy President A.Lawrence said that citizenship status was
bestowed on the plantation community at various stages and the process
of merging them into the mainstream with the creation of an adequate
number of administrative divisions commensurate with their population
concentration, is the basic reason for problems now being encountered by
them in relation to issue of identity cards, BCs and other documents.
According to the norm, there should be one GS division for every 350
families or 1,750 persons, he said.
According to a survey conducted by them, of the total 452,395
registered plantation voters in the Nuwara-Eliya district 71,000 persons
were without ICs.Only a very small number of them will be able to obtain
the temporary ICs now being issued by the Divisional Secretaries before
December 31 deadline, he said.
Leader of the UNWU and Deputy Minister of Justice and Law Reform
V.Puththirasigamoney said that although the GSs and Divisional
Secretaries had agreed to issue the temporary ICs there was a marked
lethargy on the part of the persons concerned to approach the
authorities, may be because they are not literate.
Their union in coordination with the Department for Registration of
Persons had organised mobile services to the plantation areas for
issuing ICs. Reaching them individually is a difficult exercise but they
hoped to reach them through the electronic and print media in the future
for helping them to get ICs, he said.
O.A.Ramiah, General Secretary of the CPRFU said that the want of ICs
among a considerable percentage of the plantation community will impair
their full representation in the PCs.
They also encounter problems in getting jobs outside the plantations
due to this reason, he said.
P.P.Devaraj, former Ceylon Workers’ Congress (CWC) parliamentarian
and incumbent Chairman of the Foundation for Community Transformation,
an NGO working for the welfare of the Indian origin community, told the
Sunday Observer that according to surveys conducted by them in Nuwara
Eliya and other districts in the Central Province, over 35 percent of
registered voters from the plantation estates were not in possession of
national identity cards. |